Shinju
Shinju is an ancient ritual performed by followers of the Old religion, particularly Occultists. It describes a death match between two practitioners of occult magic in which they pit all of their resources, followers, and personal skills against each other under the observation of an Old God. It was once a common practice in the old days of the Avylonian Empire, which practiced old god worship, but became increasingly uncommon and was eventually put out of practice closer to the fall of the empire. It is incredibly rare for the ritual to be performed during modern times, though any Occultist is expected to at least know of it. History Exactly when this ritual came about is unknown, though its first recorded use was by the ancient Lich known as Abaxoth, the End of All That Is, who used it to destroy a powerful rival and gain even greater power. Since then it was most commonly practiced in the early days of the Avylonian empire, where it was primarily used by powerful generals seeking to challenge their rivals and gain greater prestige. It became less common in the years leading up to the great Plague, before all but disappearing during modern times. However, any true Occultist would still have learned of the ritual and to many it is one of the most important (if outdated) traditions for those who draw their power from the Old Gods. The Ritual and its Function Shinju is an occult ritual, a sacred rite of respect, and a bloody battle to the death all wrapped in one. It can only be used by one practitioner of occult magic to another, When an occultist declares Shinju against another practitioner it is impossible for the recipient of the challenge to refuse, as the attention of one or more old gods are immediately invoked upon the challenge (this being the reason why the rite is treated with such gravity; one literally can't speak of it without dire consequence). Following the initial challenge, both parties will prepare and perform the associated ritual, invoking the attention of a chosen god. The most common practice is to only call upon a single god, who will oversee the challenge and grant their favor to the victor, but it is not unheard of for each participant to invoke their own god and gain the favor of their specific patron. In rare cases, multiple old gods will be called upon and an entire group of demons may witness the contest, though this is incredibly dangerous as such a large number of old gods gathering within the mortal realm can bring about dire side-effects, including mass insanity, plague, and natural disasters in the surrounding lands. It is believed that more than two dozen old gods witnessed the Shinju invoked by Abaxoth against his rival centuries ago, and that entire cities were destroyed during the course of the Occultists' battle as a result. After the overseer or overseers have been called upon, both Occultists will be given time to prepare themselves before beginning the competition, gathering any allies and preparing any lesser rituals or spells at their disposal. Variations of the rules and conditions of each Shinju may be described by either the participants or the overseeing old god(s), but generally the only stipulation on the contest is that both parties use everything at their disposal to destroy each other. Each occultist will call upon any apprentices, allies, servants, creations, and resources at their disposal and either use brute force or tactical cunning to crush their foe. The victor will gain the favor of any old gods overseeing the rite, potentially gaining great power without having to worry about the stipulations and catches that normally come with an old god's aid. However, refusing to participate in a Shinju or attempting to escape the contest is a certain death sentence, as the old gods will mark the cowardly occultist with death and damnation, sending any servants or agents on the mortal planes to slay the transgressor. There is no set stage for the contest, and generally the participants will make use of all of Panoulis and its adjoining Planes during the course of the battle, and many historical rites took months or even years to play out. Category:Lore Category:Occult magic